Rockville Centre Board of Education candidates in their own words

Posted
Wednesday, May 8, 2013 4:00 pm

Incumbent John O’Shea is being challenged by Lynda Rubino for his seat on the Rockville Centre Board of Education in the upcoming election.

The Herald took the opportunity to ask each candidate a serious of questions to give voters a chance to better understand their positions on key issues in this election. School districts are facing challenging times, and it’s important that the members of the Board of Education are the best people for the job.

It’s also important that residents get out and vote on May 21. Not only is the Board of Education trustee position open, but there are also two positions on the library Board of Trustees, as well as the school and library budgets.

Rockville Centre managed to keep the budget within the confines of the tax cap this year. What will you do to ensure this continues in the future?

John O’Shea: In the future, I will continue to devote myself to the months of meetings and countless hours of speaking with the public to come up with the decisions that create a budget. I am proud to be a member of the current Board of Education, that took into consideration what the future might hold, and saved our schools from the problems that are facing most of the school districts around us. Other districts are closing schools and laying off teachers, while in Rockville Centre, our children are educated at the high levels that we have come to expect. It was our insight that led to renegotiating with all our staffing units to bring salaries down to under a 2 percent increase each year. These negotiations saved us from the predicament that so many other districts are now in. I was first elected three years ago because of my business background and my conservative views. I will continue to be your conservative voice on the board and I will continue to look ahead when we plan our future budgets.